Corbeau GTS II Seat Install - Performance Seating

Performance seating at its finest!

With aftermarket suspension, tires, and brakes getting better and better, the older muscle cars and classic Bow Ties are capable of handling way beyond what the Chevy engineers could expect back in the day. One issue that almost immediately shows up after doing a suspension upgrade is the lack of bolstering support in the factory seats. All this new suspension stuff helps the car stick to the road, but makes it much harder for you to stick in the seat. Nobody wants to be holding onto the steering wheel for dear life just to keep from bouncing around in the interior like a Pachinko ball.

We have a '70 Camaro Z28 in the garage that will soon be receiving an entirely new suspension system and the stock seats just won't cut the mustard. We wanted a seat that would do the job of holding us in without being too extreme looking and yet still be comfortable enough for daily driving.

The answer to our request came from Corbeau in the way of the company's GTS II. This seat, according to Corbeau, is ideal for the daily-driver owner who wants a sporty stock look, while still maintaining aggressive comfort. The seat was designed with thigh and kidney supports, while still maintaining a stock-ish appearance.

The GTS II is constructed from a strong, lightweight, powdercoated tubular steel frame that is tied together with springs. Then high-density, injection-molded foam is added to give the seat its shape. Lastly, a cover is applied in either leather, cloth, or (in our case) microsuede. The microsuede not only looks plush, it also has a non-slip property to it so you almost stick to the seat but not in an uncomfortable way. The seat also features a reclining mechanism that allows the seat back to be adjusted. Unlike other reclining seats out in the market, these have a spring system in the recliner that brings the backrest back up when you hit the lever like modern factory seats. Corbeau sells all of its seat materials by the yard so you can recover you rear seats to match your new fronts.

To make installing the seats into earlier cars simple, Corbeau has come out with vehicle-specific track systems. The company has tracks for just about every Bow Tie, including Tri-Fives, Chevelles, Novas, Vettes, and (of course) Camaros.

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Corbeau GTS II Seat Install - Performance Seating

1 Here is one of the GTS II seats we picked up from Corbeau. These seats are offered in multiple materials from leather, vinyl and our choice, microsuede. The seats feature high bolstering on the cushion and backrest that will keep us firmly planted in the seats when the car goes side-to-side. Even though these are performance seats, they are not rock hard. They still offer some cushiness so they won’t get uncomfortable on those long hauls to the track.

2 Earlier versions of the seat tracks were universal and had all kinds of little brackets and stuff that needed to be assembled to get them into the car. Now Corbeau has made vehicle-specific track assemblies that have all the bolt holes in all the right places. This will make it easy to integrate these seats into our '70 Camaro.

3 We decided to tear off the cover just to see what was lurking underneath. We were happily surprised that we found thick metal framework with real springs instead of thin tubing and plastic strapping found in lesser-quality seats.

4 The only prep work needed to ready the seat for installation is to join the tracks.

5 Here are the high-back seats we got with our Camaro when we bought it. The correct seats for the car should look like the '69 vintage, with a low backrest and separate headrest. These high backs are from a '71 or later Camaro. While the seats are comfortable, they offer very little side-to-side support.

6 The stock seats will require a 1/2-inch socket for removal. We would recommend removing the rear hardware first, then the front. This will keep you from fighting the springs in the track assembly that make the seat shoot forward when you hit the release handle.

7 Once the hardware is out, the best way to get the seat out without damaging anything is to tip the top out first. Just keep an eye on the tracks and make sure they don't scratch the sill plates.

8 Here are both seats so you can get an idea of the sizing comparison. The Corbeau seat is a little taller, but the cushion is a little lower. This will put more of your body in the seat and, in turn, offer more support. Because the headrests simply pull out, we can remove them to lower the visual profile and put 'em back in for protection.

9 Since the tracks are vehicle-specific, they simply bolt back into the car in the stock locations with the stock hardware. Even though the headrests stick up a little higher than our stock seats, the Corbeau design still looks smaller in the car. Now once we update the suspension we won't be fighting to stay in the seat. Plus, the reclining function of the seat will let us find the perfect driving position, kick back and just enjoy the drive.

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